The new Siriano's jewel

Tag

Two days before the start of New York Fashion
Week, held for the first time at Lincoln Center, Christian Siriano was making final
arrangements. Model castings and fittings were completed, new shoes
and handbags from his line for Payless were laid out, the
guest-list was finalized, runway music was composed and produced by
boyfriend-musician-jewelry designer Brad Walsh,
and celebrity clientele were coming in to the showroom to try some
of Siriano's signature looks. For an industry
notorious for its last-minute changes and completions, the young
designer seemed to be way ahead of the game. Honestly, this is not
a surprise. Siriano's design process is specific and detail
oriented (for example, Siriano designs all his own prints -
little-known fact), and it seems that everything is thought
out.

For the first time, Brad Walsh, an all around
renaissance-man with his hands in music, jewelry
design, and fine-art photography, was designing
jewelry to accompany Siriano's collection. The core of the
jewelry collection is based on vintage
pieces sourced from around the world, with mixed metals,
bright corals and turquoise stones, and beautifully layered
textures and materials. With a strong exotic and multicultural
influence, the pieces accompanying Siriano's
collection are a departure from his personal jewelry
collections, which lean towards edgy, raw, and rock & roll
inspired. Walsh's jewelry was influenced not only by the
clothing designs, but also by his group of talented
friends; necklaces are named and created for some of his closest
companions.

On the day of the show, the immense preparation paid off: each
look came down the runway brilliantly styled, with
Walsh's beautiful, ornate necklaces layered over
Siriano's lush garments. The multicultural
influences of the collection, with African, Indian, and Chinese
references were balanced with stark whites and sharp tailoring. The
designs are all very wearable, from chic work-wear, to cocktail
dresses, to sophisticated shorts and safari-inspired jackets; the
gowns were definite show-stoppers.

Read Next

The winner of Project Runway is just 24-years-old but has already designed exceptional dresses: his pieces are a mix of maturity, sophistication, subversiveness and a particular regard to curvy fashion. Exclusive interview and photogallery